Fastener driving devices



July 28, 1959 B. JORGENSEN 2,396,231

FASTENER DRIVING DEVICES Filed May 15, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 In yen for Bernhardt Jo/yensen By his Attorney WCL U20 July 28, 1959 B. JORGENSEN 2,896,231

F w- Z I B I Q I FASTENER DRIVING DEVICES Filed ma 15. 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FASTENER DR-IVIN G DEVICES Bernhardt Jorgensen, Marblehead, Mass., assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Application May 15, 1958, Serial No. 735,428 14 Claims. (Cl. 12-122) This invention relates to fastener driving devices for shoemaking rnachines and is herein illustrated as applied to a bed lasting machine constructed generally as disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 1,284,870, granted on November 12, 1918, upon an application of Matthias Brock, but modified in certain respects as further disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,209,962, granted on August 6, 1940, upon an application of Rene E. Duplessis. It is to be understood, however, that in various novel and useful aspects, the invention is not limited to machines of the illustrated type. For example, the invention is equally applicable to lasting machines which are both fully and partially power operated as well as to shoemaking machines, other than lasting machines, which are operated in conjunction with a fastener driving operation.

A conventional and long practiced method of shoe construction includes the steps of lasting the upper of a partially fabricated shoe by wiping the margin of the 'the upper and insole and clinched against a metal plate fitted in the bottom of thelast. If it is desired, the upper material may also be secured by an adhesive, whereupon the tacks are often employed only. as temporary holding means and therefore are neither clinched nor are their'heads driven flush with the upper in order that they may be removed when the adhesive has set. The tacks are generally applied while the shoe is clamped in a lasting machine, being driven either inwardly of the wipers or through holes in the wipers adjacent their inner margins. I

A portable tack driver which has long been employed for this purpose is illustrated in United States Letters Patent No. 500,225, granted June 27, 1893 upon an application of Joseph E. Crisp et al. The driver is grasped in one hand by the operator while he strikes a plunger extending from the driver body with a hammer i or other force applying instrument which he grasps in his other hand. Since the operator must use both of his hands to operate this type of tack driver, he must release control of the levers or other instrumentalities employed to operate the lasting machine and particularly its wipers.

Accordingly, one of the objects of this invention is to provide means for operating a tack driver of the type used with a shoemaking machine which driver may be operated by one hand leaving the operators other hand free to control the shoemaking machine.

Another object of this invention is to provide a portable tack driver for use with a lasting machine which is semi-automatic in its operation requiring a minimum of effort on the part of an operator.

Still another object of this invention is to provide means for delivering an operating stroke to a conventional portable tack driver which is adapted for use with a bed lasting machine without requiring continuous Patented July 28, 1959 adjustment regardless of the size or contour of the shoe being lasted. 7

Since it is desirable to insert tacks in a definite or predetermined pattern within a limited area, a high degree of control of the tack driver must be exercised by the operator. Attempts have been made to convert tools of the above-identified type for one hand operation by providing electric and/or pneumatic motor means integral with the drivers. However, the recoil inherent in the use of electric or pneumatic motors is translated to the driver, making it extremely difficult to obtain the required degree of control at a speed commensurate with etlicient shoemaking.

Accordingly, still another object of this invention is to provide a portable tack driver which may be operated with one hand but which is free from undesirable recoil.

In accordance with these objects and as a feature of this invention, there is provided a shoemaking machine having a shoemaking instrument, such as a wiper assembly or the like, with means for adjusting this instrument to conform to the contours of a shoe positioned in the machine. Also provided are a portable tack driver, which is movable relatively to the machine, and more particularly to the shoemaking instrument, and means comprising a striker plate movable in a predetermined path for delivering an operating stroke to the driver. The striker plate is mounted on the machine for adjustment as a unit with the shoemaking instrument whereby parallelism and substantial alignment therebetween are maintained at all times. The means for moving the striker plate through its operating stroke comprises a motor physically independent ofthe driver but which may be operated from a trigger actuating a microswitch or the like, on the driver. Since the driver is physically independent of both the striker and the shoe making instrument, the portability of the driver relative to the instrument is in no way impaired. Furthermore, since the striker operating motor or solenoid is physically independent of the driver, the recoil imparted to the driver is no greater than if the driver were hand actuated and certainly far less than would be the case if the driver were actuated by a solenoid or air motor integral therewith.

The above and other features of the invention including various novel details of construction and combination of parts will now be more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, I a

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a bed lasting machine in which the invention is embodied; and

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the machine shown in Fig. l. I p

The invention is herein illustrated in its application to a bed lasting machine of the type shown and. described in the above-identified Brock patent, modified as shown in the above-identified Duplessis patent, which patents may be referred to for a better understanding of such features of the general organization of the machine as are hereinafter described. Whereas, machines made in accordance with the above patents are manually oper ated, it will be understood that this invention has application to machines which are both partially and fully power operated. In view of the disclosure of features of the general organization of machines of the illustrated type in the above-mentioned patents, the draw: ings show only as much of such machines as is neces: sary for an understanding of the invention, and such parts as are common to prior machines of this type will be only briefly hereinafter described.

A shoe S is supported bottom upward in position for the lasting operation with its toe supported on a toe rest 2mounted' on a post'4, its heel being clamped by mechanism not shown. For lasting the toe end of the shoe there are. provided toe wipers 6. which embrace the upper U (Fig. 2) about the toe. The'wipers'are operated by a hand lever 8 to wipe the margin of the'upper inwardly over the insole, the. wipers as usual, receiving advancing movement lengthwise of the shoe and closing movements laterally of the shoe.

The toe wipers 6 are adjustable to conform to the contours of the shoe positioned in the machine end, for this and other purposes, are carried by a head or wiper carrying plate 10 mounted on a tipping head 12 which is pivotal about studs 14 in projections 16 (only one of which is seen in Fig. 1) extending upwardly from a plate 18 which in turn is movably secured to the main machine frame (not shown). The axis of movement of the tipping head 12 about the studs 14'is designated as axis A and extends transversely of the machine. The tipping head is adjusted and maintained in position relatively to the axis A by a crank 20 which turns a screw 22 threaded in a hub 24 on the head 12 and rotatably connected at 26 to the plate 18. By a similar crank and screw mechanism 28 (only a portion of which is shown) the wiper carrying plate 10, and consequently the wipers 6, are adjustable about an axis B extending lengthwise of the machine to adapt the wipers to the transverse inclination of the forepart of the last bottom.

Tacks T (Fig. 2) are driven by a portable tack driver D (Fig. l) to secure the margin of the lasted upper U to the insole temporarily or permanently. The tacks pass either directly into the upper or through holes H in the wipers should the same be so constructed. The portable tack driver D employed for the purpose is identical to that disclosed in the above-mentioned patent to Crisp, being operated by imparting sharp blows to a plunger P extending out of its upper end.

Means for automatically delivering operating blows or strokes to the tack driver are provided and comprise the mechanism now to be described. A rod 30 extending lengthwise of the machine parallel with the axis B and the wipers 6 is securely joined to the head or wiper carrying plate 10 by a bracket 32 and clamping bolts 34. A vertical post 36 is adjustably secured at right angles to the rod 30 by a bracket 38 and a slot and screw connection 40. A parallelogram or four bar linkage comprising a pair of arms 42, 44 pivoted on the vertical post 36 at 46 and 48, respectively, and an arm 50 pivotally attached to the arms at points 52 and 54, supports a striker plate 56 which is secured at right angles to the arm 50 by a screw 58. As is inherent in a parallelogram linkage, the arm 50 occupies a position at all times parallel with the post 36. The striker plate 56, being normal to the arm 50, is therefore maintained at all times parallel with the wipers 6-and moves in a path, although curvilinear, nevertheless in substantial vertical alignment with the carrying plate 10 and the wipers.

A solenoid 60 having a plunger 62 is mounted by a bracket 64 at the upper end of the vertical post 36. The plunger 62' is pivotally connected to the left-hand end of the arm 44'by a link 66, the length of which may be adjusted to control the amount of extension of the plunger from the coil of the solenoid when the solenoid is deenergized and therefore'the amount of movement of the arms 42 and 44. A tension spring 68 is stretched between the arm 44 and the vertical post 36 to maintain the arms in theirupperpositions as shown in Fig. 1. Cooperating with the adjustable link 66 to provide fine adjustment of the heightwise position of the arms 42, 44 and consequently further to control the length and force of the stroke of the striker plate 56, is a rotatable eccentric cam 70 pivotally mounted on the vertical post 36 and engageable with the arm 44. Positioned for finger tip control on the tack driver D is a microswitch 72 which is connected electrically by a lightweight flexible wire74 to a relay 76, which, in turn, is connected electrically to the solenoid 60.

The tool is operated in the following manner. By appropriate adjustment of the bracket 38, the link 66, and the cam 70, the striker plate 56 is positioned above the wipers 6 with sufiicient heightwise clearance to allow the portable tack driver D to be freely manipulated thereunder. Because the striker plate 56, through its above-described mounting mechanism, is attached to the wiper carrying plate 10, any adjustment of the carrying plate, and consequently of the wipers 6, for example, to conform to the contours of the particular size and shape of the shoe being lasted, is translated to the striker plate and accordingly will be maintained at all times substantially in alignment with the wipers and parallel therewith. When an operator is ready to insert the lasting tacks, he grasps the tack driver D in one hand, positioning it below the striker plate in engagement with the work as shown in Fig. l. The operator need not release his other hand from any of the lasting machines controlling levers. By depressing the microswitch 72, the circuit is completed to the relay 76, which, in turn, energizes the solenoid 60 drawing the plunger 62 upwardly against the force of the tension spring 68 thereby causing the striker plate 56 forcibly to strike the plunger P of the tack driver, causing a tack to be driven from the tack driver into the work. Release of the microswitch 72 deenergizes the circuit permitting the spring 68 to return the striker plate 56 to the Fig. 1 position, whereupon another tack may be driven into the work. It will be noted that because the striker plate 56 is mounted for movement on the above-described parallel linkage, it is maintained at all times parallel with the wipers 6 for most effective tack driving. It will further be noted that because the above-described mechanism for striking the plunger is separate from the driver D, portability of the tack driver is not impaired nor is the tack driver subjected to undue shock or recoil, as might be the case if the solenoid or an equivalent pneumatic motor were located on the tack driver.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A shoemakingmachine having, in combination, a shoemaking instrument, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, motor means for operating said striker, and means for controlling the operation of said motor means, said portable driver being movable into various tack driving locations relatively to and independently of said shoemaking instrument and said striker and its operating motor.

2. In a shoemaking machine having, in combination, a shoe support, a portable tack driver movable by the operator relatively to a shoe on the support into various tack driving locations, a striker separate from said tack driver and mounted for movement through a predetermined path to impart an operating stroke to said tack driver when the tack driver is held in any of said tack driving locations, and power operated means for thus moving said striker.

3. A shoemaking machine having, in combination, a shoemaking instrument adjustable to conform to the contours of a shoe positioned in said machine, a portable tack driver, a striker spaced from said shoemaking instrument for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, said driver being physically independent of said striker, and means mounting said striker for adjustment as a unit with said instrument to maintan substantally constant alignment therebetween.

4. A shoemaking machine having, in combination, a shoemaking instrument adjustable to conform to the contours of a shoe positioned in said machine, a portable tack driver, a striker spaced from said shoemaking instrument for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, said driver being physically independent of said striker,

and means mounting said striker for movement at all times parallel with said instrument.

5. A shoemaking machine having, in combination, a shoemaking instrument, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, a solenoid for operating said striker, a control switch on said portable driver for controlling the operation of said solenoid, said portable driver being movable relatively to said shoemaking instrument and physically independent of said striker and its solenoid.

6. A lasting machine having, in combination, wipers, means for adjusting said wipers to conform to the contours of a shoe being lasted, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, said striker being spaced from said wipers and physically independent of said portable driver, and means mounting said striker for movement at all times in substantial alignment with said wipers.

7. A lasting machine having, in combination, wipers, means for adjusting said wipers to conform to the contours of a shoe being lasted, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, said striker being spaced from said wipers and physically independent of said portable driver, and means mounting said striker for movement at all times parallel with said wipers.

8. In a shoemaking machine having, in combination, a shoe support, a portable tack driver movable by the operator relatively to a shoe on the support into various tack driving locations, a striker separate from said tack driver and mounted for movement through a predetermined path to impart an operating stroke to said tack driver when the tack driver is held in any of said tack driving locations, power operated means for thus moving said striker, and control means on said portable driver for controlling the operation of said power operated means.

9. In a shoemaking machine having, in combination, a shoe support, a portable tack driver movable by the operator relatively to a shoe on the support into various tack driving locations, a striker separate from said tack drive rand mounted for movement through a predetermined path to impart an operating stroke to said tack driver when the tack driver is held in any of said tack driving locations, a solenoid for thus moving said striker, and a control switch on said portable drive for controlling the operation of said solenoid.

10. A lasting machine having, in combination, wipers, a carrier plate mounting said wipers, means for adjusting said carrier plate and wipers to conform to the contours of a shoe being lasted, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, said striker being spaced from said carrier plate and wipers and physically independent of said portable driver,

and means mounting said striker for movement at all times in substantial alignment with said carrier plate and wipers.

11. A lasting maching having, in combination, wipers, a carrier plate mounting said wipers, means for adjusting said carrier plate and wipers to conform to the contours of a shoe being lasted, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, said striker being spaced from said carrier plate and wipes and physically independent of said portable driver, and means mounting said striker for movement at all times parallel with said wipers.

12. A lasting machine having, in combination, wipers, a carrier plate mounting said wipers, means for adjusting said carrier plate and wipers in accordance with the contours of a shoe being lasted, a supporting frame rigidly attached to said carrying plate, a movable force delivering member mounted on said supporting frame, electric means for imparting motion to said force delivering member, a portable tack driver movable relatively to said wiper and said force delivering means, and means for controlling the operation of said electric means.

13. A lasting machine having, in combination, wipers, a carrier plate mounting said wipers, means for adjusting said carrier plate and said wipers in accordance with the contours of a shoe being lasted, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operation stroke to said driver, motor means for operating said striker, control means on said portable driver for controlling the operation of said motor means, said portable driver being movable relatively to said carrier plate and wipers and physically independent of said striker and its operating motor, a frame secured to said carrier plate, and means mounting said striker for movement relatively to said frame with said striker at all times parallel with said wipers.

14. A lasting machine having, in combination, wipers, a carrier plate mounting said wipers, means for adjusting said carrier plate and said wipers in accordance with the contours of a shoe being lasted, a portable tack driver, a striker for delivering an operating stroke to said driver, motor means for operating said striker, control means on said portable driver for controlling the operation of said motor means, said portable driver being movable relatively to said carrier plate and wipers and physically independent of said striker and its operating motor, and means mounting said striker for movement as a unit with said carrier plate and wipers to maintain said striker at all times in substantial alignment with said carrier plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Stewart Dec. 1, 1914 

